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JC-AR : Attendance Areas & In-District Transfers


Name: Attendance Areas & In-District Transfers
Section: Students
Code: JC-AR
Article Date: August 9, 2022

JC-AR : Attendance Areas & In-District Transfers

Students are generally expected to attend the school in the attendance area in which their parents or legal guardians reside. Attendance areas provide a balance among number of students, available classrooms, and staff. The district strives to assure that the educational programs and opportunities within the district's schools are comparable. When unusual circumstances or special needs exist, exceptions will be considered based upon parent/guardian request and/or district need in accordance with these procedures. Transfers in attendance areas may be granted for any of the following:

Placement of Student in District Program

The district chooses to locate a number of district-wide programs at specific schools. Placement in these
programs is made in accordance with the student’s educational needs, qualifications, and space available, regardless of the student’s attendance area.

Admission into Magnet Schools or Choice Options

Admission to district Magnet Schools or a variety of Choice Options operated by district shall be in accordance with the procedures established for the respective program. These programs are generally open to students throughout the district without regard to the student’s attendance area. Further information about admission to district magnet schools and choice option programs can be found in IGBHAB-AR: Choice Option Schools and Programs.

In-District Transfers

In rare situations, where student enrollment substantially exceeds space and/or staffing available, the district may need to transfer a student to another school. If a transfer is necessary, the district will make every effort to work with parents/guardians to assure as smooth of a transition as possible. If space becomes available in the student’s home school, a student who is subject to an in-district transfer will have the first right of returning to the home school. The district will provide student transportation to the new school in cases of in-district transfers.

Attendance Area Change Requests (ACR)

A parent/guardian may request a change in attendance area when special circumstances merit such a change. Approval or denial of requests will be made based upon student needs, space available in the school, the particular grade or program, impact on enrollment balance between the schools, and appropriateness of the program. Student educational and behavioral records may be reviewed. When an ACR is granted, student transportation to and from school is the responsibility of the parents/guardians.

Priority Considerations for Attendance Area Change Requests

In addition to consideration of space and staffing available, and requests received by the established due dates, the following priority considerations will be considered when reviewing an ACR:

  • Timely submission of ACR form.
  • Parent/guardian is a current Bend-La Pine Schools staff member
  • Desire to remain at a student’s current school for the remaining years served at that school, if a student’s primary residence changes to outside of the attendance area mid-year.
    • If a student is requesting an ACR due to an upcoming relocation to a new attendance area, proof of future residence is required (i.e., rental agreement, copy of earnest money deposit, utility bill/agreement, etc.).
  • Significant family and/or student circumstance and/or hardship of an educational, medical, financial or personal nature that would be relieved by a change in attendance area. The circumstance or hardship to be relieved must be specified. At the elementary level this may include daycare.
  • Participation in a sequential program of studies where the program is not offered at the student’s resident high school. Once transferred for reasons of a program of study, the student will be expected to remain enrolled in the program for which the transfer was granted.
  • Sibling(s) who will be in attendance at the same school in the year following the submission of the ACR. Note: siblings are not automatically granted enrollment.

Once an ACR change is granted, it will not be necessary for parents/guardians to complete an ACR form annually. It is the expectation that a student will remain at the approved school for the duration of time at each educational level. When a student moves to the next educational level (i.e., elementary to middle school, or middle to high school), a new area change request will be necessary if the student desires to
attend a school outside of their attendance area. If a student does not enroll in the ACR approved school when initially approved, the approval is considered void and the student must reapply should they wish to enroll at a later date. If a student unenrolls from their ACR approved school, the approval is considered void and the student must reapply should they wish to re-enroll.

Attendance Area Change for Activity or Athletic Participation

In competitive activities, which are governed by the Oregon School Activities Association (OSAA), eligibility will be determined by a review based on OSAA standards. Changes in attendance area may jeopardize OSAA eligibility. The district will not grant transfers based solely on athletic/activity considerations. Any student wanting to participate in an OSAA sport or activity should not begin practice until the ACR has been approved.

Procedures for Attendance Area Change Request

  • To enable planning at the respective schools and to receive priority consideration, parent/guardians requesting a transfer should submit a completed ACR request by the district communicated deadline. Requests can be completed electronically or with a paper ACR form. A supplemental letter may be attached to further explain the specific reasons for the request.
  • Requests received after the district communicated deadline, will be considered after all other requests have been evaluated.
  • If approved, the receiving school will confirm the decision and schedule an appointment for the parent and student to meet with the appropriate school personnel to complete enrollment and placement. Every attempt will be made to complete notification by the first Friday after Winter Break in order to facilitate enrollment, scheduling, and planning.
  • The receiving school will also notify appropriate district personnel to implement the change. i.e.: Transportation, Information Technology, etc.
  • If an ACR is denied, a parent/guardian may request to have their student placed on a waiting list for consideration if space becomes available later in the year. Waiting lists will not be carried forward to the next year; a new request will be necessary.
  • A parent/guardian may appeal an ACR denial, in writing, within 10 working days, to the Executive Director of Elementary, Middle or High School Programs, depending on the grade level of the student. The Executive Director will review the appeal and render a decision within 10 working days. If the parent/guardian is not satisfied with the decision of the Executive Director, they may appeal the decision, in writing, within 10 working days, to the Deputy Superintendent. The Deputy Superintendent will review the appeal and render a decision within 10 working days. The decision of the Deputy Superintendent shall be final.

Determining Residence

For purposes of enrollment, the primary residence of the student must be used. If it is determined that some address other than primary residence has been used for obtaining access to a specific school, then all rights and privileges accorded through this district administrative regulation regarding the choice of school shall be forfeited.

Students whose primary residence is within the Caldera High / La Pine High Choice Attendance Area, as defined by the district, have the option to enroll at Caldera High School or La Pine High School. Once a student has started at either Caldera High or La Pine High, that high school will be considered the student’s home area high school. If a student who resides in the choice attendance area and who has started at either Caldera High or La Pine High would like to transfer to a different high school in the district, that student must follow the procedures for an Attendance Area Change Request as described above.

Students who are sharing the housing of other persons due to loss of housing, economic hardship, or a similar reason; are living in motels, hotels, camping grounds or trailer parks due to lack of alternative accommodations; are living in emergency or transitional shelters; are abandoned in hospitals; are awaiting foster care placement; have a primary nighttime residence that is a private or public place not designed for ordinary use as regular sleeping accommodations for human beings; are living in a car, park, public space, abandoned building, bus or train station or similar setting; will not be denied or delayed school enrollment due to lack of any document normally required for determining primary residence.

Students who live outside of Bend-La Pine Schools’ district attendance areas and wish to enroll the
district are asked to follow the guidance set forth is JECB-AP: Admission of Non-Resident Students.


District Reference(s):

IGBHAB-AR: Choice Option Schools & Programs

JC-BP: School Attendance Areas JEC-AP: Admission of Students

JECB-AP: Admission of Non-Resident Students

JECBD-AP: Homeless Students & Students in Foster Care

JECBD-AR: Homeless Students

Review Date: 10/16/00, 4/14/03, 3/2/09, 4/12/10,
1/13/12, 1/14/13, 2/8/16, 10/2/19, 8/4/20, 8/2021,
12/20/21, 7/19/2022

Approved: 1/22/99, 10/16/00, 4/14/03, 3/2/09,
4/19/10, 1/14/13, 2/13/14, 1/16/15, 2/8/16,
9/26/19, 7/24/20, 8/2021, 9/14/21, 8/9/2022